A new IT leader and five new fee earners are the latest in a series of appointments at Mincoffs corporate and commercial law firm.
Chris Kewin brings more than three decades of expertise to his new role as IT manager at Newcastle-based Mincoffs Solicitors, while the firm has also welcomed two solicitors, two trainee solicitors and a paralegal to its growing team. Elsewhere in the business, solicitor Alicia MacRae has joined the commercial services department following the completion of a training contract at the Newcastle office of a transatlantic firm, while the private client team has expanded with the appointment of newly qualified solicitor Amy Tunnicliffe and the promotion of paralegal Tamsin Mennell.
Two of its former paralegals have accepted training contracts with the firm, with Alex Fitton taking up his first seat in the dispute resolution department and Joshua Carr commencing his training with the real estate team. The new roles are part of the firm’s ongoing growth, with appointments across the last year including chief operating officer Julie Parr, residential conveyancing solicitors Lisa Bucknall and Claire Devapal, senior marketing and PR executive Bronia McGregor, digital marketing executive Chelzi Graham, and solicitors Grace Hughes and Becky Stafford qualifying into the corporate and residential conveyancing teams respectively.
Senior partner and head of corporate, Paul Hughes, said: “It’s fantastic to welcome a trio of new staff to the firm across both our commercial and private client offering, while three of our existing staff advance to new stages in their careers at Mincoffs. Mincoffs is a firm which is passionate in investing in its people and we are delighted to be in a position to expand our services across the firm through both external recruitment and internal progression opportunities. I have no doubt that that the new staff will prove an asset to their teams and I look forward to seeing them succeed in their new roles.”
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Newcastle Law Firm Samuel Phillips Law has promoted solicitor Felicity Nelson to senior associate and appointed her as head of wills, probate and trusts.
Since joining Samuel Phillips Law in September 2020, Ms Nelson has demonstrated strong organisational and leadership skills and has effectively led the wills, probate and trusts team in a period of change both for the department and the firm.
She has a first class honours masters degree in Law from Northumbria University Law School and has since lectured there on a part-time basis for final year MLaw students. The promotion will see her head up the private client offering at Samuel Phillips Law as well as the other firms in the group. Last Summer, Samuel Phillips Law was acquired by lawyer Sufe Miah, founder and director of Miah Solicitors in Leeds. Miah also acquired Hathaways The Law Firm which has offices in Gateshead and Low Fell.
She said: “I am very grateful for the support that Samuel Phillips Law have given me and am delighted about my promotion to Senior Associate and Head of Department. I take great pleasure in advising the firm’s clients and am looking forward to the next chapter in my legal career.”
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Durham-based architectural practice Howarth Litchfield has announced the promotion of Andrew Wilson to associate director.
Mr Wilson, who is a chartered building surveyor, leads the building surveying team working on various conservation and regeneration projects throughout the region. He is currently supporting several refurbishment and new build works following a large influx of work over the last three years at Durham Cathedral, Durham University, on listed buildings and on ecclesiastical quinquennial inspections.
He said: “I am thrilled to have been made associate director. I joined Howarth Litchfield from school when I was 18 and I have been supported in my career development ever since.
“Howarth Litchfield’s flair for design, combined with its heritage and building surveying services, are proving a winning formula. It is a fantastic company to work for and the current roster of projects is keeping the building surveying team extremely busy. I want to build the discipline further within the practice.”
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Marketing agency Silverbean has promoted Rebecca McNiven to general manager EMEA.
Ms McNiven, who was previously Silverbean’s associate director and head of the client experience, now has responsibility for client performance across the EMEA region and also the wider global delivery teams. Before joining Silverbean early in 2022, she was already an established figure in the industry with over 14 years of experience, previously working at affiliate network Awin and SaaS partner Partnerize.
She said: “I joined Silverbean to get the opportunity to shape something myself and make it better, so I’m delighted to be appointed as the new general manager EMEA of Silverbean. The new role is a big responsibility and it’s one I take incredibly seriously, but I’m really excited about the challenge. I want to ensure we continue to deliver a brilliant performance to all of our clients, regardless of their size. We’re working on how we can add additional value to our clients in order for them to have a gold-level experience with us and we’re doubling down when it comes to client performance. We do a really good job of that currently, especially in terms of how we measure, but in the economic climate at the moment and in general, it’s paramount we’re delivering what our clients expect. There will be challenges ahead but I have a great team around me who are all wanting to continue to grow at pace.”
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A North Shields engineering firm has bolstered its team with five new appointments after securing an order book totalling more than £3m over the next twelve months.
Northern Engineering Solutions welcomed Hammed Shittu, Gary Pendleton, Trudi Harrison, Christopher Rutherford, and Michael Anderson in the first quarter of 2023. The firm has recently won a series of innovative projects for organisations, including the RAF, Pragmatic and CPI. It specialises in mechanical, electrical and process engineering (MEP) solutions, with a particular focus on high and ultra-high-purity process pipework, effluent treatment systems, and cleanrooms.
Speaking about the latest additions to the business, Mark Davey, founder and managing director, said: “This is an exciting period of growth for Northern Engineering Solutions. To ensure we can continue supporting organisations at the forefront of innovation, we recognised the need to augment our existing team by adding new staff who bring complementary skills to the business. We want to extend a warm welcome to Hammed, Gary, Trudi, Christopher, and Michael.”
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